One of things that has long interested me about Toyota’s production system is the role that cost reduction played in its development (obtained through non-zero-sum means). It seems an obvious point of focus for any producer of goods (or services). But what is not obvious is how the unit of measure, the yen, may have […]

Around this time twenty years ago, I was on an airplane traveling to from Connecticut to Los Angeles on a day-trip (a day trip!) to meet with an important supplier to my company, Pratt & Whitney. I had just bought the book Lean Thinking a few days earlier (at an actual bookstore), and I read […]